These Things That Dreams Are Made Of
by Acetoorion
Summary: A short QuistisSquall friendship piece. Quistis' life is put on the line and it's up to Squall to save her, but when it comes to it, will he know what to do?


A/N: Just a little story I wrote a while back and finished the other day. Not much to say about it, other that it's a little strange, but I had fun and that's all that matters really. Reviews will be appreciated, but I'm not going to cry without them. Hope you enjoy, usual disclaimers apply and this is my intellectual copy write.

These Things That Dreams Are Made Of

The last thing Quistis heard before blackness engulfed her was a futile, anguished shout of warning from her former pupil, then there was pain, lashing through her legs and bathing her body in unbearable heat. Then silence, as welcome unconsciousness took her.

* * *

Squall brought his Gunblade slashing down on the Bomb, firing at the same time. His anger and fear fuelled the blow and the thing disintegrated before his eyes. But he didn't care about that; he threw his weapon to the side and knelt down next to his teacher, his friend.

This shouldn't have happened, he had been careless and a troop of Galbadian soldiers and their creatures had ambushed them. These weren't usually a problem, but they had been travelling for some time and a Cockatrice made matters worse by petrifying Zell before the battle really began. Nevertheless, he and Quistis held out, each calling on their GF's, magic and strength to overcome the foe. Soon there was only a Bomb left, Squall was relieved: it shouldn't cause much trouble. Quistis had called on Quezacotl and he stood back in anticipation, the Bomb wouldn't know what had hit it. But Quezacotl was tired and Quistis more so, when they let lose the power of the heavens they struck a tree, turning it into a twisted burning mass. Quistis returned to herself and collapsed on the ground in exhaustion, she didn't see the burning branch come crashing down on her.

Squall cast a storm to put out the flames, the branch had pinned her legs and smoke billowed from the charcoal remains of the tree. Burns covered the visible flesh of Quistis' body, and her clothes were stuck to her where they had burnt to her skin. Knowing the burns could be dealt with easily with Cura, despite how severe they were, Squall put his attention to more pressing matters and his level of anxiety rose when he realised that Quistis wasn't breathing, and when he put his hand to her neck, he could not feel a pulse.

* * *

Quistis groaned and looked around. She was in a valley, steep cold, unforgiving cliffs rose up to heights shrouded in dense mist. The same mists swirled around her and black dead trees looked out of the fog, bending their twisted limbs towards her.

"Where the hell am I?"

Cold penetrated her bones as she got to her feet. She could feel nothing but cold, creeping through her, seeping into her thoughts, freezing her limbs. She didn't shiver. Her vision was filled with shades of grey. She was isolated, alone. There was no colour in the landscape; it was a patchwork of black and grey. Black trees, grey cliffs, grey mists. The rocks were shining pyrite, but it seemed dull here. She sunk to her knees, scraping them on the unforgiving stone. She felt no pain, only cold.

* * *

Fumbling in his backpack squall grabbed a "soft" potion and threw it at Zell's immobile form, it shattered on impact and he slowly began to move again.

"Zell! Get over here and help me!"

Groggily Zell made his way to Squall.

"Oh Hyne, what happened?"

"Never mind, help me! She's not breathing!"

Squall was trying to help Quistis breath, and Zell went to move the branch from her legs.

"C'mon Quistis, don't give up on me…"

* * *

A soft breeze tugged at her hair. The grey sky above her was marked with black stars; they reminded her of hard eyes, watching her as she stood alone in this strange land. It was with a shudder that she realised she was indeed being watched, she could see nothing, but she knew with cold certainty, the she was not alone.

"Show yourself!"

Nothing. Her voice echoed and died on the barren landscape. She hugged her arms to herself: nothing could take away the cold. She was still being watched.

"Coward! Come and face me!"

Only echoes answered her, but this time they did not fade away. They were taken up by the winds; they whispered through the trees, formed words and tormented her.

"Where…where are you…where are you going…going…going…" 

The whispers intensified, rising in a crescendo, as the wind hit her and pushed her to the ground.

"_Run…run…run and face me…face yourself…yourself…hide…run…fear…fear me...me…"_

Quistis crouched down with her arms over her head, trying to block out the sound, trying to escape this torment, but the sound was inside her, part of her, it trapped her, held her in an icy grip. And so she ran, she didn't know where she was or where she was going, but she ran, her only concern to get away from that terrible voice. She pushed forward, ignoring the branches that tore at her, ignoring the stitch in her side: she felt no pain.

* * *

"Quistis, come on, try!" Squall shouted.

With a last heave Zell moved the branch and dropped it with the rest of the tree.

"Her leg is broken."

"That's the least of her problems. Now breath Quistis, breathe!"

He almost cried with relief as she gave a shuddering gasp. But she did not wake up.

* * *

Burning pain suddenly lashed up her legs and she fell hard. Intense heat rushed over her body, but she welcomed it: anything was better that the biting cold that had penetrated her. But it soon returned, more intense than before, she felt no more pain. She looked up to the sky in despair, only the merciless stars looked back. But there was something else with the stars, something white and shining, floating down towards her: a bright light in the encompassing darkness. It spun in the air, flashing and turning until it reached her. She stood and held out her hand. It was a Sheer feather, simple and perfect in her cold fingers. On an impulse she let it go, the breeze took it up, and she followed it, taking comfort at something bright in the monochrome landscape around her.

It was as she followed that the Shadows came, they brought darkness with them and melted into it, whispering in a sibilant chorus. They stayed in her peripheral vision, flitting in and out of the night. She walked faster, concentrating on the feather, banishing the Shadows images from her mind. Somehow she knew that it would help her

She soon came to a forest, blacker than the landscape and colder than the stars. The feather followed a winding path through it, forcing its way past crooked trees and tearing branches. Behind her the Shadows broke, and she could see them moving ahead of her through the trees.

"What are you?"

It was good to create noise in the silent land. Her voice mingled with their taunting whispers and was soon overcome.

"Who are you!"

She shouted defiantly, and strode forward with more confidence that before, her spirit could not be crushed that easily.

But it was worse inside the forest. The shadows were all around her; they filled her senses, confusing her, blurring her vision, leading her astray. But the Sheer feather was always there, keeping her going, helping her. Seemingly angered the Shadows began to pull at her; their icy touch accentuated the cold around and inside her. They were slowing her down, she could not keep the feather in sight. In panic she rushed forward, and did not see a gnarled tree root jutting out and she fell over it, landing on the forest floor among fungi and moss-covered roots. The Shadows engulfed her and she finally lost sight of the feather. Now, she felt only cold.

* * *

"Is she breathing?"

"Yes."

"Now what?"

Squall took off his jacket and put it under her head.

"I can heal the burns with a cure spell, but we'll have to get her back to Garden and get Dr. Kadowaki to deal with that leg…and" he frowned, "maybe take a look at her head…"

Blue mists swirled around Quistis's prone form as Squall cast the spell. The burns faded away, and Squall was sure he saw her lips twitch.

* * *

She was drowning, the Shadows were sucking her life away, pulling the air from her lungs, stealing the warmth from her body, cutting the light from her soul.

"You will not take me!" She struggled to get up, to do anything to escape these clawing demons, "Please, someone help me!"

Making a last desperate effort to get up, she twisted round, and a white gleam caught her eye. It was another Sheer feather; she locked her eyes on it, willing it to help her, and a sudden warmth flowed over her, pain accompanied it, but she did not care. The sensations combined and gave her the strength she needed, with a last colossal effort she pushed up from the ground and started to run through the forest once more, the feather floating like a beacon before her.

The forest grew denser as she ran on, and she now only caught fleeting glances of the shadows. The trees began to close in on her, taking the place of the Shadows who could not reach her taking their turn in trying to suffocate her. There was no light, the air seemed to thicken and the trees had begun to claw at her again. But now she could see light ahead, and she ignored the clawing branches, she kicked aside leaves, ducked out of harms way and veered round putrid fungi.

The forest seemed to anger at her defiance, and more thorns blocked her path. It was as though the forest was alive in this place of death, revelling in it, and wanting to cause more pain. Or maybe trap souls in its dense interior and torture them for eternity, maybe that was what the Shadows were. Quistis refocused her mind on the feather, she had to escape this place; she would not fade into non-existence here. Not now she had come so far. As more thorns loomed out of the mists that swirled round her feet she smirked, here pain did not seem to exist, only cold. The thorns would not hinder her. This forest was dead, and maybe she was too, but you cannot feel pain in death, and nothing the forest could do would hurt her. From then on she made faster progress, and at long last the trees began to thin and she could see traces of cold light through them.

As she pushed through the last of the trees and fell onto the land that they had hidden from her, the forest seemed to shrink in on itself. A harsh cry rang out over the desert before her, keening into the air until at last it faded and the forest was quiet again. Before her was a desert that stretched on into the distance, it was devoid of life and colour, as was everything in the land. Sadly she looked for the feather and was encouraged to see that she had at last caught up with the first feather. The two danced around each to her before floating off on the wind again, glinting in the cold starlight.

* * *

"Squall, you can stop worrying, she's going to be fine." Dr. Kadowaki said evenly.

"Has she woken up yet?"

"No…"

"Why?"

"To tell you the truth, I really don't know. Physically she is fine, she'll be a bit stiff for a few days…she seems to be in a deep sleep."

"A coma?"

"I honestly don't know, all her physical signs would lead to that, but her mental activity is that of someone in deep REM sleep."

Squall frowned and began to pace the room. Dr. Kadowaki looked at him in annoyance.

"Squall! Pacing about my office is not going to help Quistis wake up." she sighed then continued more gently, "If you really want to help, then talk to her."

"What?"

"Talk to her, it might help if she can hear a familiar voice, there is nothing more I can do for her."

'And I'm Mr. Conversationalist' he thought bitterly and continued pacing.

"Squall, either go in there and show her that she isn't alone, or leave."

"Alright! Alright…" and he walked through the door to Quistis' room.

* * *

The feathers had lead her to the edge of a cliff. The pair of them floated over the precipice. She was at the end of her journey; that was obvious. Behind her the Shadows were closing in, moving at a leisurely pace now, as if they knew she had nowhere else to go. Anger and despair washed over her, why was this happening? She felt like she was being tested.

It hit her like a wave of icy water: she _was_ being tested. But why? She regarded the shining feathers in front of her, what did they signify? They reminded her of something, she searched her memory, when would she have done anything with Sheer feathers, they came from Thrustaevis' in Galbadia…of course! Squall. He had given her a feather after they had fought the last battle with the sorceress. He had come up to her and mumbled something…he had told her that he was glad that she had been there to help him; he then gave her the feather and walked away with Rinoa.

So maybe it wasn't her that was being tested. Maybe she had to wait for something, for Squall to do something. But how could she wait, the shadows were surrounding her; their cold breath chilled her to the core. She stepped back, and a few lose pebbles slipped over the edge of the precipice behind her, and fell into oblivion.

* * *

Squall had fallen asleep beside Quistis' bed. His conciseness was now floating in a void of smoky mists. He squinted, waving his hand in front of his face, trying to clear the mist and see what was in front of him. He was above a shadowy plain, below him he could make out dark shapes running towards something, a lone figure on the edge of a cliff.

He knew it was Quistis, event though he couldn't see her features. He also knew that if he didn't save her here, in this mindscape, she wouldn't wake up again. He briefly wondered how any of this could be real, but quickly realised that the reality, or lack thereof, of the situation was unimportant. He flew down to where the lone figure stood, not really conscious of his actions. He though of where he wanted to go, and was there.

"Quistis?" She smiled at him.

"I was afraid…that you wouldn't come." She said, not quite meeting his eyes. "Only you can get us out of here, look." She pointed at the sheer feather floating in the air beside them. "It lead me here, but you have to lead us out."

Squall looked at it, and knew what to do. But he was afraid; looking back he saw the Shadows were only a few feet away, regarding them curiously. He didn't have time to be afraid. He grasped Quistis' hand.

"You must trust me," he said urgently, "this is a place of emotions, fear, anguish, but you must trust me, and I you. And we will be safe."

"I trust you Squall, I always have." She smiled reassuringly and they stepped back, away from the cliff, then ran forward, and jumped.

* * *

Squall awoke with a start and sat up quickly, looking at Quistis. To his immense relief she was weakly fumbling with the cumbersome oxygen mask that covered her face, and blinking in the harsh lights of the medical wing. He immediately took the mask off for her and smiled reassuringly.

"You're ok Quistis; you're in the medical wing."

"I knew you could save us." She smiled at him, some colour returning to her cheeks.

"Wh-what…" Squall was surprised, he was sure he had just been dreaming, "that place was real?"

"Of course." She closed her eyes tiredly. "I think it was some sort of test…I think we passed."

Squall was not entirely convinced, but he was too relived that his mentor was alright to worry about it. He had changed so much over the past few years, before he would not have let himself feel anything. Now he did, and even though the worry for his friend's safety had been hard to bear, the relief he now felt was a welcome thing.

"I'm so glad you're alright Quistis. You need to rest, I'll be here when you wake."

Quistis nodded tiredly before falling into a deep, but natural sleep.

* * *

Rinoa looked through the window into Quistis' room, smiling to herself. Quistis was sleeping peacefully and Squall was sitting by her side holding her hand, obviously deep in thought. She felt a little bit bad about using her new powers to manipulate her friends this way, but she also knew that Quistis and Squall had a history, and that it would be a great loss to both of them if their friendship was not set in stone, as she knew it was now.

She walked from the window to the door of the room and went to Squall, kissing him gently on the cheek before pulling a chair up next to him.

"I'm glad she's alright."

"I was worried. I-I never really thought how much she's done for me. She's been there from the beginning, she was so patient and I was such a brat!" Squall smiled ruefully, then looked more serious. "I don't know what I would have done if she…" he trailed off, looking into Rinoa's eyes before brushing some hair out of Quistis' face.

"She's going to be ok, love. Just make sure she knows you care. We've all been through too much together to hide our feelings." Rinoa got to her feet, went to the bed and kissed Quistis gently on the forehead. "She's important to all of us, give her my love when she wakes again." She gave squalls hand a squeeze, "I'll see you later."

Squall leaned back in his chair, as Rinoa left the room, a small smile playing on his lips. His life had started to take direction, and he was, for the first time in his life, comforted to know that he would not be alone in his destiny.


End file.
